Why the Hate for Nickelback?

First, this is not my favorite band by any means; I can take or leave them. But I’m perplexed by the intense hate that this band seems to evoke in so many people. They have become the butt of endless jokes, such as “If you play a Nickelback song backwards you’ll hear messages from the devil. Even worse, if you play it forwards you’ll hear Nickelback.”
Whatever Nickelback’s shortcomings, there are countless bands that strike me as far worse. For instance, I’d rather listen to Nickelback all day than listen to the Dave Matthews Band or Sugar Ray for 5 minutes.
Why so much hate for a band that is not great but is far from being the worst out there?

Because a long time ago Dave Grohl said they were shit and Dave Grohl is God.

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Popularity + Perceived/relative mediocrity.= Hate.

Very few things that are super-popular have no haters.

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They’re generic, adequate/streamlined hard rock. Nothing special, nothing particularly sets then apart from other generic releases.

For a band so ‘hated’ they perform fairly well within relation to both album sales and billboard popularity. The hate towards Nickleback has become something of a meme within modern pop culture; I reckon Nickleback tends to be a “guilty pleasure” for many.

Personally, I’m not a fan; but I think they’re leaps and bounds better than other modern artists such as Nicki Minaj, Lil Pump, Ariana Grande etc.

Even have some decent memories playing this when I was in school.

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Wasn’t the lead singer dating that Canadian broad? Avril whatever or something?

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This is why.

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Henry Rollins is the man.

IMO, they are disliked, because their “product” seems to be designed to sell vs something original. I think that turns some people off.

Eh, popular stuff always gets hated on by the too-cool crowd. McDonald’s, Olive Garden, and commercially super-successful pop/rock/rap share in common broad appeal and overexposure.

Snobs can’t self-congratulate unless they’re good for things the masses find pleasing.

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You forgot Hootie & The Blowfish.

Its like it backfires on itself.

I remember hearing all of these groups first big hits for the first time and was like “Oh, he did that thingy with the guitar. Not bad.”.

Then it goes into high rotation. Now the novelty gets ground off as it gets worked deep into your nerves. Then as soon as you hear the first riff you get that “Oh shit, not this again”, which is the same response you get when the cat starts horking a fur ball. You know you have to jump and run and get the cat out of the house or at least on to a hard surface where it’s easier to clean up.

But you can’t! Because it’s music. So you grab the radio and start running for the door but it’s too late and instead of setting the cat down gently, you slam the radio off the floor in a fit of defeat driven anger. But it doesn’t stop. So you grab the nearest blunt object and start smashing it only to realize that it’s a Raggedy Ann doll, and you’re at a birthday party, and the kids are all crying😢. And now your neighbors hate you.

That’s why.

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The what? lol

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Radio! It’s like an archaic streaming service that uses either frequency or amplitude modulation…

Ah, nevermind. No one uses those things anymore.

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Certain thing should not be done as a cover…

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But Primus did it too and nobody wants them to die!

I thought Lemmy was god?

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I can be kinda a music snob, and often like more under-the-radar bands that everyone and their mom isn’t listening to. So, I have never even listened to Nickelback but obviously know their name and reputation.

So, they’re like Justin Beiber or Selena Gomez to me: I can’t name one song but if someone plays one of their more popular ones, then I’m like “Oh, I’ve heard that 100x at the gym/store/etc… but just had no idea that’s who it was”.

It’s funny, because I feel like he gets a free pass. As a drummer in Nirvana (and other side projects) he is fantastic. But as a front man/guitarist/song writer for the Foo Fighters I feel like he makes the most benign, boring, generic, cliched “90’s rock” that there is. Even a photo of Foo Fighters looks like carefully crafted photoshoot of dudes trying so hard to project that 90’s vibe for the modern dad. But because of his connection to Nirvana and his “everyman” personality, his bland music gets more attention than it should. (rant over).

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I … I thought I was the only one that felt like this?

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There’s a trinity.type thing happening…

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It’s like “Father, Son, Holey Moley! You have a conjoined twin growing out of your cheek!”

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He played with NIN, which gets him a pass with me. But that probably just speaks to my own issues.

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Dave grohl is a very good drummer, a talented guitar player and a very good songwriter. However, he is a generational talent as a frontman, and that is why he is widely respected and acclaimed. He has multi instrumental technical chops, AND the charisma of a rock God onstage… and offstage is apparently the nicest guy ever according to everyone. And has been doing it at the top for a quarter century now.

No one should argue that foo fighters are a musical revelation. But they create very good albums and are one of the best live shows you can attend and have been headlining the biggest festivals in the world for decades. Similar to acting, live performance chops tends to garner a lot more respect than recorded media.

Nickelback plays very simple music with lyrics that seem aimed at whiskey tango party themes. And they have become a meme of bad, manufactured rock like Creed. They get a bum rap, IMO, but are a fairly forgettable product of the 2000s rock scene.